


Flu Season Follies

by Lady_of_Rohan



Series: Connor Whump [2]
Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Adorable, Androids, Bathing/Washing, Bubble Bath, Butts, Caretaking, Cute, Deviant Connor (Detroit: Become Human), Father Figures, Fever, Fluff, Gen, Good Parent Hank Anderson, Hurt/Comfort, Illnesses, Movie Night, Needles, Poor Connor, Robot Feels, Robot/Human Relationships, Sick Character, Sickfic, Sweet, Whump, Worried Hank Anderson
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-18
Updated: 2020-03-18
Packaged: 2021-03-01 01:53:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,674
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23197387
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lady_of_Rohan/pseuds/Lady_of_Rohan
Summary: Wanting nothing more than to fit in, Connor accepts a flu shot, with unfortunate consequences. Hank deals with the aftermath.
Relationships: Hank Anderson & Connor
Series: Connor Whump [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1645918
Comments: 11
Kudos: 168





	Flu Season Follies

**Author's Note:**

> I started writing this before the whole... well, you know. Corona thing. Flu season worries me every year because I'm in poor health and I wanted to write something cutesy and fluffy to help distract myself. I wanted to post this on the 17th, Bryan's birthday, but here it is, better late than never! 
> 
> I hope it can bring some smiles in these very dark times! Thank you all for reading my first fic, and leaving so much kind and lovely feedback! ♥

Stepping into the Detroit Police Department, as he would any other day, Connor was ready to meet up with his partner and continue their latest case.

Entering via the usual gateway as he flashed his credentials, he was surprised when a woman gently gripped his elbow. He turned to look at her, noticing that she was wearing nurse's scrubs.

"Detective! Before you enter the office, have you had your flu shot for this year? The 2039 virus is extremely dangerous!"

Connor's head tilted, smiling politely.

"I haven't, you see... well, because--"

_I'm not made of flesh. I'm an android._

"Because you don't have the time," the woman persisted, without allowing him to formulate a response. She couldn't have been much older than 30, though he tended to avoid scanning civilians for their information unless completely necessary, as it could give away his identity. "I know, I know... I've heard it all. I promise, it'll just take a minute. It'll help keep our officers, and our city, safe. And it's covered by the DPD."

Unsure of what to say, seeing as he was clearly getting better at blending in with humans, he gave a nod. What could it hurt, in any case? If Connor was considered one of their officers, he should partake in all of the proper procedures.

"Uh... sure. Of course."

She led him across the office, to a portable privacy curtain that had been installed in one of the break rooms. There were a couple seats, and a little table, but Connor opted to stand, waiting politely while the nurse instantly started typing into a tablet with his information.

"Name?"  
  
"Connor... Connor Anderson."

"Any allergies?"

"Not... to my knowledge."

"Last flu shot?"

"This is my first."

She wrinkled her nose as her fingers swiped, before pocketing the tablet. Clearly disapproving.

"I'm very healthy," he added.

"The flu can take out even the healthiest people." She put on some sterile gloves, and got to business. "Okay, I'll just need you to lower your pants."

Connor blinked, not quite sure if he'd heard that correctly. "Excuse me?"

"It's a big dose," she explained. "Gotta do it in the butt."

He supposed that made sense, given human physiology. Politely obeying, Connor unbuckled his belt, undid his jeans and slipped them down past his hips. He wondered if Hank had to do this as well, imagining that his older partner couldn't have given them an easy time about it. Most humans, he'd noticed, were extremely prudish about any form of nudity or showing of skin.

Connor stood there awkwardly, still facing her as he held onto his waistband, and the nurse chuckled. "Just turn around for me and relax, okay? You can lean against the table."

In situations such as these, it was still remarkably easy to follow orders, appealing to his protocol. His fingertips tapped against the table while he waited, leaning over it and holding his pants up with his opposite hand. Connor heard the hiss of the injection tube being loaded, glancing over his shoulder at her. She must have mistook it as hesitation, but he was sincerely curious about human medicine.

"No need to be nervous, Detective," she smiled, needle ready. "Just a little poke."

She approached him, gloved hand on his hip, and he realized that the latex barrier between her fingers, and his 'skin' was what was preventing her from realizing that he wasn't human. Connor tried not to seem too emotionless, or too affected as she stuck him. What came out was a sincere noise of surprise, having never felt anything quite like it.

" _Oh!_ "

It felt strange, a bit of uncomfortable pressure as the metal needle sunk into his plastic hardware. His systems briefly indicated that a foreign object was embedded. Connor wasn't given time to regret his split-second decision of going through with this, or even process whether or not it hurt, as the nurse kept to her word of it being mercifully quick. Auto-injection finished, and a bandaid placed, she patted his hip.

"There you go! All done."

Connor swiftly pulled up his pants, giving a smile and a polite nod as he made himself decent again.

"Thank you, ma'am."

"We brought you guys some doughnuts for being such good sports."

That was certainly kind of them. While Connor didn't partake, he was sure that Hank would be appreciative of some morning coffee and breakfast, caloric as it was.

He exited the privacy curtains, glancing around warily. No one else in the office had seen him, so he made his way over to the kitchenette where food was waiting and fresh coffee was brewing.

Hank strolled up to his desk right as Connor was approaching with breakfast. It wasn't typical, as Hank was far less depressed these days, but still enjoyed sleeping in. Though they lived in the same abode, Connor enjoyed a morning walk to the station while Hank slept. Sometimes, he'd take Sumo out before going into work. It helped clear his mind, stay focused, and since androids didn't tire, the distance didn't bother him.

"You're here later than usual," Hank noted, as Connor set the cup and napkin with the doughnut on Hank's already-crumb-littered desk.

"I got held up," Connor said simply, not wishing to go into the details. "But, I brought you breakfast."

Hank sat down at his desk, but kept his gaze focused on him. "Thanks, kid. Hey... you okay? You look a little... well, not red, but blue in the face."

So, he must have been embarrassed, after all. Connor straightened up, adjusting his leather jacket.  
  
"I'm fine. Once you've eaten, we can start at the scene of the crime."

Android crime was still high, even a year after the Great Revolution. While they could now coexist, no longer objects to be bought or owned, of course there were some growing pains. Trying androids as humans had been a massive change in America's legal proceedings, though a great number had fled to Canada, naturally.

Connor sat down at his desk across from Hank, while the Lieutenant made quick work of breakfast and browsed his phone instead of going through case files. He noticed that the computer screen seemed a little too bright, as he blinked a few times, hoping it was just his optical units... rather, his eyes, not quite registering light.

He opened up a few witness testimonies, finding the text on the screen to be rather blurry. That was indeed strange, as he leaned forward in his seat, squinting at the screen to better determine the words.

"Hank, is your computer display all right?" he asked after a few moments, to no avail.

"Yeah," Hank shrugged, and wiped chocolate crumbs from his beard. "Looks fine. Something up?"

  
"Some of these files look a little pixelated."

"Probably some dumbass uploading in the wrong format again. Either that or you need glasses."

Hank chuckled, and Connor registered it as a joke. He was getting better at understanding and adapting to Hank's sarcastic self of humor. Connor offered a smile, resuming browsing the files, though he was still a bit concerned as he'd never had an issue before.

Some time passed, and Connor noted that Hank was finished eating, so he moved things along.

"Are you ready to head out, Lieutenant?"

"Sure thing, kid."

The two left the office, shoulder-to-shoulder through the station, stepping out into the brisk winter air. A light snow was falling, more like a freezing rain, drizzly and wet against the windshield. They had a crime scene to visit, this time an android-related hate crime at a local grocery. Connor was filled with a sense of pride, now able to defend his people, rather than hunt them down and crucify them for what came naturally.

They'd only been driving for a few minutes, Hank's favorite Duke Ellington album drowning out most other noise, when Connor noticed how warm he felt. He removed his leather jacket, and Hank rose a grey eyebrow at him, but said nothing.

Removing the heavy layer didn't help matters much, and Connor politely cleared his throat.

"Lieutenant, can I roll the window down a bit?"

Coming to a halt at a stoplight, Hank looked incredulous as he glanced over at him.

"Connor, it's 30 goddamned degrees outside."

"I'm a little warm," he justified. With a great, heaving sigh, Hank gave in with a nod and a few select curses, and Connor opened the window a crack, the cold air a relief as it filtered into the vehicle.

At last, they arrived at the grocery, the car parallel parked, and the two detectives getting out. Connor enjoyed the few moments of snowy air before they stepped into the warm establishment. Caution tape projectors were already set around the area, several beat cops and crime scene analysts on the scene.

The cashier had been an android, and upon finding out, a human had gone ballistic. The android would survive, already rushed off to be emergency repaired, but they'd fought back in self-defense. The human now lay in a puddle of their own blood, splayed out upon the once-pristine tiled flooring. It was their job, now, to see if there was motive beyond hatred towards androids. The owner of the shop, and older woman, had stayed behind for questioning.

Connor and Hank surveyed the scenery, coming to stand before the victim.

"Connor, can you bring up their information?" Hank asked, arms crossed as he paced around the body.

"Certainly."

Closing his eyes, Connor browsed his internal database, and scanned the body. His sensors flashed red, and he shook his head, receiving an error. Hank had noticed, remarkably perceptive to Connor's quirks, by now.

"You okay?"

"I got an error," Connor said, confused. "It seems there's data corruption. I'll try again."

He made another attempt, fingertip pressed to his temple, as he blinked several times. His vision was disrupted, suddenly going black, and he was vaguely aware of his body swaying dizzily. As he fell backwards, he slammed into a nearby display of stacked canned peaches, the sound of plastic clanking against metal preventing him from going dark fully.

"Jesus Christ, Connor!"

Connor laid there, surrounded by aluminum cans that had scattered everywhere, disoriented. Hank was knelt beside him in a heartbeat, hands on his shoulders, pulling him upright and into his lap. When his vision cleared, Hank's concerned features were filling his view, as the older man stayed protectively close to him.

"What the hell happened?" he prodded, as Connor blinked a few times.

"My processor ceased to function."

"English, please. You blacked out?"

Connor gave a nod.

The shop owner seemed upset by the display, but Hank opened his mouth first to reassure them.

"Sorry, sorry... my team will clean this up. My partner here just needs some fresh air, is all."

Connor felt himself being hefted upwards, as Hank drag-carried him back out the door. Once outside, his head felt a little clearer, though he was still embarrassed that he'd caused such a scene. Hank got him to lean against the brick wall of the shop, being sure that he could stay upright on his own.

"Listen," Hank started, "you've been acting weirder than usual all damned day. I'm starting to get worried."

Hank instinctively reached out to touch Connor's pallid cheek, when he noticed that he wasn't responding as usual. His voice instantly softened.  
  
"You're burning up, son. It feels like you have a fever."

"Hank," Connor said, at last... as realization dawned on him. "I need to tell you something... and I'd like it if you refrained from being upset with me."

Hank's face was the equivalent of opening up a week-old body bag. "Oh god, Connor, what did you do this time?"

"There were nurses in the office today. They administered a flu immunization. In my..." _Buttock? Backside? Rear?_ "...ass."

  
His partner cringed. "Okay, first of all, don't ever say that again, swearing doesn't suit you. Second, what in fuck's sake were you thinking?!"

"I panicked," Connor said, "I didn't know what to tell them."

"That you're allergic?! That you already had one? Anything!"

Hank's voice rose so that the surrounding officers were staring. Connor lowered his own voice, in hopes that his partner would follow, his shoulders slumping.

"That... would have been viable dialogue, now that I think of it."

Fist against the brick wall, he could tell Hank was attempting to deal with his frustration in a healthier manner. He calmed down after a few long breaths, his hand loosening.

"Listen, that shit wasn't made for... _well_ , people like you. Didn't any of your information tell you that might be a pretty bad idea?"

"There hasn't been much research regarding human medicine on android bodies, understandably."

"Well, the case can wait. We need to get your temperature down."

Connor's eyes searched his partner's. He was ashamed, embarrassed... and most of all, feeling incredibly small and stupid.

"Hank, I--"

"Get in the car," Hank sighed. "I'll update the team on the situation."

Connor obeyed with a nod, skulking his way back down the sidewalk, across the taped-off scene, and slunk into the passenger's seat of Hank's car. He closed his eyes as he leaned against the headrest, while Hank took care of the business side of things. He felt terrible that he was once again putting a case on hold.

Being human was still very much something he was accommodating to. And by god, it wasn't easy.

When Hank returned, he seemed to have blown off steam, the car door shutting as he stuck the key in the ignition.

They were quiet, for some time, as Hank drove them back towards the outskirts of the city and his home. Connor stared out the window, neon lights and the snowy streets a blur, his head turning eventually when Hank spoke up again.

"How are you feeling right now?"

"Warm," Connor said quietly.

Hank glanced over at him, and quietly rolled the windows down again, allowing the frigid breeze to waft into the car.

When they arrived back home, it was fully snowing, gusts of powdered flakes sticking to the windshield in geometric patterns. Connor managed to get out of the car without stumbling, Hank going to the front door to unlock it. He let Connor inside first, a gentle hand upon his back in a comforting gesture. Connor appreciated it. Sumo whined from his favorite spot in the corner of the kitchen near his food dish as they entered, and stood up to greet them. Connor reached down to pet him, finding that touching the giant, warm canine often made him feel much better.

"I'll run a bath for you," Hank mumbled, "good for fevers."

Connor gave a nod as he followed Hank into the bathroom, though he didn't go without noting the irony of him blasting Hank with freezing water when he was in a drunken haze.

Once inside, Hank leaned over the tub and twisted the faucet. He tested the water, and poured some bubble bath in it to make it a bit fancier. Connor sat at the edge of the bath, managing his sweater and undershirt, instantly feeling relief from the suffocating heat of his clothes. Hank knelt down and helped him get out of his shoes and socks so that he wouldn't have to bend over and dizzy himself.

After that, Connor watched while Hank went to the medicine cabinet above the sink. He pulled out a vintage thermometer, nothing elaborate like the newer and far more technological models that could read temperature in a matter of seconds. It was a simple digital variety.

Hank stood in front of him, holding the item out with his fingertips. "Open your mouth."

Connor's brow knitted, but he did as Hank asked, as he placed the item beneath Connor's tongue.

"Hold that until it beeps. I'm gonna go get some fresh towels and your clothes."

Sitting as patiently as he could, the watery pour of the tub filling behind him, Connor held the thermometer with one hand, his opposite resting upon his knee. His fingertips tapped anxiously until Hank returned, setting the items on the sink. The thermometer beeped, and before Connor could examine the reading himself, Hank plucked it from his mouth. He squinted at the digital numbers, looking horrified, his mouth agape.

"Holy _fuck_. That can't be right..."

"What does it say?" Connor asked, brow creased with concern.

"176?!"

"That's typical overheating for a computer. My systems are treating it as a foreign body."

Hank didn't look any more reassured. "Like a reaction to an infection?"

"Yes."

" _Christ_..." Setting the thermometer back down, Hank, ran his fingers through his gray hair. "Get in the tub. I'm gonna make a cold compress."  
  


While Hank went to the kitchen, Connor stood, and stripped down the rest of the way, neatly folding his pants and underwear on the closed toilet lid. He eased himself down into the bath, the tepid water both comforting and relaxing. An overabundance of bubbles from running the water so long obscured his pale figure beneath the foam.

His partner returned with a folded-up washcloth, and he sat at the edge of the bathtub, before reaching over and placing it upon Connor's forehead. He could tell that he had wrapped it in ice, to help bring his fever down. Hank held it there, gently, comfortingly... as the two sat in silence, the occasional splash as Connor shifted slightly or idly ran his hand along one of the bubble stacks.

"It's gonna be okay, son," Hank said, once Connor had closed his eyes and tried to relax. He focused on the coolness of the ice against his forehead, already not feeling as uncomfortably overheated. "I guess it's a good thing we can't take you to a hospital."

Connor cringed. Perhaps that was why Hank was so upset.. he'd once again unwittingly resurfaced memories of Cole.

"I feel so stupid," Connor said quietly, afraid to open his eyes and look at him. "I just... I wanted to feel like I fit in. Like I belong."  
  
"Belonging is overrated," Hank scoffed.  
  
Connor trailed off, unsure of what else to say. "... I suppose my emotions overrode logic..."

"Well, believe me, emotions fuck everything up," Hank said sardonically. Connor peeked an eye open to regard him. "One of these days you're going to give me a goddamned heart attack. And until they figure out how to put one of those... thirium pumps in someone like me, you gotta be more careful."

"I will," Connor reassured.

"Good. No more letting people stick you with shit."

They remained there for awhile, until Connor felt significantly cooled down. Hank gave him some privacy as he dried off and got dressed in a simple tee and some flannel lounge pants. Hank brought him one of his own favorite robes, the first time he'd offered such a thing. Connor was honored that he was letting him borrow it, allowing his partner to help him slip is arms in... although it was, of course, far too large for his far more lanky frame.

Hank led him to the living room, pointing at the couch, almost as if he were ordering a demand to Sumo. "You need rest. You wanna watch something?"

Connor shrugged. "Sure."

He sat down on the couch, robe curled around him, while Hank got the remote and flipped on the streaming service. Unaware of it at first, Connor was shaking. He'd gone from feeling unbearably overheated, to something like cold gusts of air rushing through his wire framing. His body shook, unable to control it.

Connor wrapped his arms around himself, and Hank glanced over his shoulder, noticing his ordeal once his teeth started chattering audibly.

"Christ, Connor. You look like shit. You need some blankets?"

  
He gave a brief nod.

"Is this what illness is like?" Connor asked, voice wavering. "I don't like it."

Hank gave him a half-smile, clearly sympathetic to his plight as he scoffed. "Nobody likes it, kid. That's why it's called 'being sick' instead of 'having fun'."

He got a heavy, knitted afghan from the corner of the room, draping it over Connor and bundling it behind his shoulders where he tucked him into place.

"Hah... android burrito," he chuckled, and ruffled his dampened hair. "Hey, Sumo! Come here!"

The St. Bernard was instantly giving a happy bark, as Hank patted the couch cushion beside Connor. Sumo wasn't normally allowed on the furniture, due to his breed's notorious drooling issues, but it seemed that Hank was making an exception. The beast easily hopped onto the couch, licking Connor's face before laying his massive head upon on his lap. Connor managed to free a hand from his blanket cocoon to pet him.

Hank took up space in his arm chair to give the two of them some room, seeing as Sumo occupied most of the couch. "Ever seen Beethoven?"

Connor tilted his head. "Like the famous composer? I'm familiar with some of his work."

"Well... not quite. You'll see. It's Sumo's favorite."

Once the movie started, Connor soon understood what Hank had meant. He honestly wasn't surprised that there were entire films dedicated to adorable dogs... but he was, however, a bit shocked that Hank seemed familiar with it. His partner was always full of interesting new facts.

"Did you get Sumo when he was little like that?" Connor asked, after they were subjected to several minutes of the adorable film-star puppy frolicking around. It was hard to imagine Sumo being so small.  
  


"Nah." Hank cracked open a soda, and he noticed that he was keeping an eye on him, more so than the movie. "Adopted him when he was already full grown. Kinda like you."  
  


Hank's bearded features were graced with a brief, yet utterly sincere, smile. Connor returned the favor, ill as he felt.  
  


The way he saw it, belonging wasn't overrated one bit... and although Hank denied it, Connor had a pretty good feeling his partner felt the same.

Next time though, he'd pass on the flu shot.

**Author's Note:**

> Sumo gets doggie treats for each review ;) Seriously, thank you for reading!


End file.
